AS207 Devil's Waltz
by Star24
Summary: A desperate Max makes a deal with Lydecker for technology that may help Logan, only to find herself trapped once again in the Manticore web when Deck shows his true colors. And this time around, Logan is trapped there with her. COMPLETE.
1. Teaser

****

AS 2.07 Devil's Waltz by Star24

__

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2001-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is copyright 2003 Star24.

__

Synopsis: A desperate Max makes a deal with Lydecker for technology that may help Logan, only to find herself trapped once again in the Manticore web when Deck shows his true colors. And this time around, Logan is trapped there with her.

__

Here's a teaser from the next AS2 episode – Devil's Waltz. Enjoy!

* * * * * * * 

"Where are we going?" Max demanded as she followed Deck through the halls of the Manticore hospital building. They reached a pair of double doors labeled _Isolation Unit_ and Deck placed his face in a retinal scanner. The doors opened and Max followed him through them. Lydecker walked over to an observation window and waited for Max. She let out a gasp as she realized who she was looking at in the bed beyond the window.

"What have you done to him?" Max demanded with a snarl in her voice as she stared at Logan through the isolation room window. He was unconscious, his face was almost colorless, and tubes fed into his body at numerous points. A myriad of machines softly beeped and whirred, and a white coated lab technician sat at a console in the corner, monitoring their readouts.

"I'm keeping my part of our bargain." Lydecker replied.

"I don't remember bringing him here being part of the deal. I don't like it." 

"You didn't actually think we'd allow our technology to be shared outside of Manticore did you? " Lydecker said calmly. "It's this way or no way."

Max just glared at him. "If anything happens to him, you better believe that you're going down, Deck. I'll personally make sure that you die a long and painful death."

"Those emotions of yours are going to get you killed, Max. I suggest you get them under control or you aren't going to make it through the mission alive." Deck's words hit her like icy whips reminding her of the devil's bargain she'd made with him. "Not to mention, that the welfare of your boyfriend here depends on you keeping your end of things up."

Max glared at him but refrained from commenting further. Her leashed fury was evident in her posture and her eyes which almost scorched Deck with their intensity. 

"Don't you have a team waiting for you, soldier?" Deck snapped.

"The name is Max and don't forget it." Max turned and left. Deck remained standing outside the observation window with a thoughtful look on his face. He glanced once at Logan's unconscious body and then turned away himself, heading back to his office.

****

Devil's Waltz…Coming Soon…


	2. Prologue

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 Ó 2003

__

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

Prologue

Metro Medical Center

Max locked her bike to a lamppost and began to walk toward the entrance to Metro Medical Center. When she entered, her first stop was the nurse's station. "I'm looking for Dr. Sam Carr."

A bored looking nurse ran her gaze over Max. "Your business with him would be?"

"He's treating a close friend of mine. Where can I find him?"

The phone rang and the nurse picked it up. As she did she pointed down the hallway, "Room 106."

She turned to the files on her desk and began to speak into the phone, "Yes, Doctor I have that file right here…"

Max strode down the hall to the door the nurse had indicated. She knocked briskly on it and then pushed it open. Sam Carr was seated behind a desk reviewing medical charts. He looked up and smiled to see her. "Max. Come in and sit down. I'm just finishing up reviewing Logan's charts."

Max sat on the edge of a chair and waited impatiently for Sam to finish. She watched him closely for his reactions to what he was reading, but was unable to determine much from his expression. He finally set down the last chart and looked at her. 

"What's the verdict?" Max wasted no time on amenities. "How bad is he?"

Sam frowned slightly. "The good news is that I don't think he's done any major damage with his recent overuse of the exo-skeleton." He stopped.

"What's the bad news?" Max prompted. 

Sam sighed. "His spine is continuing to deteriorate. The initial damage was too extensive and that fragment that we didn't remove immediately exacerbated it. If I'd realized I would have probably taken it out when he was shot, but at the time it seemed too risky."

"What does that mean for him?" Max wanted to know.

"Right now it means that he has to take it easy for a while. No more exo use, and no activity that can aggravate his condition. Then in about 3 – 4 weeks we re-evaluate."

"Are you thinking of more surgery?" Max wanted to know.

Sam gave her a long hard look. "I don't know if it would do any good."

"That's going to go over real well, Doc." Max said. "You know Logan."

"I'm going up to talk to him about it now. Do you want to join me?"

"Not really, but I suppose I will." 

Sam smiled at her. "He may not show it, but you're important to him, Max. Your reaction to the news will have a big impact on him even though he won't admit to it."

"So, what, you want me to be all upbeat and rah rah about the fact that he has to quit using the exo-skeleton? That's not going to work." Max warned, a trace of bitterness in her words.

"Letting him know that it doesn't make any difference to you and how you look at him, is more what I had in mind." Sam said gently.

Max laughed harshly, "I've been trying to get that through his thick head for the last year. Without much success I might add."

Sam reached out and gently patted her hand. "On some level he knows it, even though he won't admit to it. Logan's real problem isn't how you see him. It's how he sees himself. All any of us can do is be there for him and keep trying to hold up the mirror of what he is in our eyes to him. You more than anyone."

Max shrugged. "Lead on, Doc."

* * * * * * 

"Max, I really want to be alone." Logan protested. Sam had given him the news and left Max to do what she could.

"So you can lie here and feel sorry for yourself?" Max said bluntly. "You can't use the exo for a while. Big deal. You coped without it for months after the shooting."

Logan glared at her. "Can't use the exo, can't do any strenuous activity. Spend the next three or four weeks lying in bed like a vegetable. And after that …" he paused and let the long term prognosis go unspoken. "Yeah, I have a lot to be in a good mood about, I'd say."

Max sat on the edge of the bed next to him, and reached a hand out to smooth a spike of hair that was sticking up. "What if your favorite revved up girl promises to come to your place every night and play nurse?" She smiled at him gently.

"Right. Empty bed pans and spoon feed me?" Logan said bitterly. "'Cause you know that the no strenuous activity prohibition includes anything else we might think about doing."

Max stood up and glared at him. "Logan Cale are you telling me that you're sulking because you aren't going to be allowed to get it on with me? That this is about us not having sex for a while longer?"

Logan's stormy eyes met hers. "Face it Max. I'm never going to be a complete man again. You heard Sam. I'm going to get worse over time, not better. We'll never be able to have a normal life together. You should probably hang this up as a lost cause, and get out there and find yourself a better specimen than what I've turned out to be." 

"If you weren't already lying in bed, I'd kick your ass for that." Max said to him, letting her anger at his obtuseness take over. "How many times do we have to go through this? It wasn't some perfect specimen who got me through the Manticore re-indoctrination. It was you. Do you know the success rate of their techniques? Something like 99.9%. Thinking about you got me through that hell, Logan. That oughta tell you something. But it seems that I don't mean to you what you mean to me. Your legs are more important." She stopped and then said slowly, looking at him straight on, "Or is it that deep down you blame me for what happened to you? If I'd been there like you asked, maybe you wouldn't have ended up shot?"

Logan stared at her, shocked by her words.

She looked at her watch. "I'm late from lunch, which means Normal's gonna fire my ass again. Hit me up if you regain some semblance of sanity, and maybe I'll stop back after I finish up work." She quickly turned so he wouldn't see the tears pooling in her eyes, and threatening to run down her cheeks.

"Max, no…I've never once thought that…" Logan finally found his voice but she was already gone. He sat there frowning and then grabbed the plastic drinking cup that sat next to his bed and flung it across the room. It hit the wall and water ran down in a streak to puddle on the floor.

"Damn it." Logan muttered as he stared sightlessly at the mess. 

"It's not your fault, Max. It's mine. It's always been mine," he whispered to the woman who was no longer there to hear him.

* * * * * * 

Outside of Metro Medical, Max was unlocking her bike when her cell phone trilled shrilly. She pulled it out of her pocket and glanced at the blank display. A frown crossed her face as she flipped open the cover. 

"Yeah?" she answered briefly, impatient to be on her way.

"Max. You wanted to talk to me." Donald Lydecker's voice said softly, sending a chill down her spine.

"I did." Max said and waited.

"Your email mentioned a quid pro quo. I'm wondering what it is that I have, that you want badly enough to make that offer."

Max glanced around. "I can't chat now, and I don't want to talk about this over the phone."

"I appreciate your caution," Lydecker approved. " I can meet with you in person, tonight."

"Alone. No funny business or our deal is off before it even starts." Max warned. "You got a place?" She listened as Lydecker gave her an address. "I'll be there at eleven," she confirmed and closed the phone with a snap. She climbed on her bike and sped on her way back to Jam Pony.

End of Prologue


	3. Chapter One

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 

**__**

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

* * * * * * * * * 

Chapter One

Jam Pony

Max sat glumly on the bench facing her locker. Normal had caught her slipping back late from lunch, and she had been forced to listen to one of his lectures on punctuality and responsibility. He'd finished it up by telling her to go wait until he had a run for her. Since the messengers were paid a minimum base salary and made extra based on runs completed, Normal had chosen a way to punish her that would actually hurt. 

"Hey girl. That face on you is sour enough to curdle milk. What's the dl?" Original Cindy's voice broke into Max's reverie.

Max grimaced as she raised her head to look at her friend. "What've you got to be so cheerful about?" she retorted. 

Cindy did look cheerful as she stood there regarding Max. She smiled smugly, "Last run Original Cindy happened to make a delivery to one fine chick. Who it turns out, just happens to play for the same team. And who just might be meetin' up with my fine self tonight at CRASH."

Max forced a smile for her friend. "Glad to see things are goin' good for someone."

"You and Logan had a fight?" Original Cindy asked getting right to what she considered the heart of the matter.

"Not exactly."

"Boo, if you don't spill it quick, his royal pissiness over there's gonna be kickin' us both out on runs. If you didn't have a fight with Logan, what did go down? 'Cause in my experience your boy is the only one who manages to put that look on your face," Cindy said knowingly. 

Max sighed. "Last night his legs gave out, even though he was wearing the exoskeleton. I took him over to Metro Medical today. According to his doctor, his back is getting worse. He has to take it easy for a couple of weeks – no exo use and no strenuous activities."

"And bein' a male he's sulkin' over the fact that he ain't gonna get any, just when he thought you two were finally getting down to it." Cindy guessed shrewdly. "Max, men think with somethin' other than their brains 90% of the time. How many years I been tellin' you that? Logan's an ok guy for the male of the species, but the fact remains that he's a male. What'd you expect from him? He'll sulk a few days, then he'll start gettin' impatient, but once he gets the green light he's gonna be fine again. Hormones rule."

"Maybe, but it's kind of more than that. Sam says that his back is deteriorating. He can't predict how bad it's actually gonna get over time. Could be the exoskeleton might not even be an option for Logan anymore. And it could get even worse."

"Worse as in more paralyzed?" Cindy said.

"Yeah. I asked about treatment but Sam said that there isn't much that can be done. Not in this country anyway. And I can't help feeling that it's all my fault. If I had agreed to help Logan with Sonrisa to start with, he might never have been shot. It's on me. He's gotta be thinkin' that every time he looks at me, even if he won't admit it."

"Boo, the only thing that boy's thinkin' bout when he looks at you is what he wants to do with and to you, preferably in a bed and without clothes involved. Trust me on that one." Original Cindy gave Max a hug. "You projectin' your own guilt onto him."

"I'm not so sure of that." Max pulled away with a frown.

"Max, I saw him those months when he thought you were dead. For a while it looked like he was gonna kill himself over losin' you. That man loves you to distraction. Ain't nothin' you or anyone can say that's gonna convince Original Cindy different. No, it seems to me that someone else is havin' their own little sulk fit over what _didn't _happen between you two last night. So you need to get yourself out of your funk and get your butt over there to see him tonight." Cindy's voice was stern as she stared Max down. "You got an imagination. So does Logan. You two be better off seein' how you can use 'em until the doc gives the green light than if you sit around feelin' all sorry and sad for your fine selves. And if you ain't gonna do that, then Original Cindy don't wanna be hearin' about it." Cindy turned and walked away calling out to Normal, "You got any runs waitin' ?"

Max stared after her trying to process what Cindy had said and wondering if she was right. 

"Missy miss you ready to do some work or you planning on taking vacation for the rest of the day?" Normal called to her, waving a package around. Max sighed and rose from the bench. Wordlessly she walked over to the cage and grabbed the package from Normal's hand. Within moments she was on her way out of Jam Pony, a grim look still on her face. Sketchy was just coming down the ramp, but Max walked right past him without a word, almost shoving him out of her way.

"Hey, what's with Max?" Sketchy wondered. "She looks like someone died or something."

Normal looked at him. "And that's your business, how? You planning on working or did you just drop in for a gossip session?"

Sketchy shrugged. "She's a friend, Normal."

"Keep it outside of work. Get this package out of here now." Normal threw a package at him. "Slackers…" he muttered under his breath. "Should have listened to Mom and went into accounting…."

****

End of Chapter One


	4. Chapter Two

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 (2003

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

________________________

Chapter Two

****

Metro Medical Center

Footsteps sounded outside of his door, and Logan looked up from pushing items around on the tray of unappetizing food that had been delivered to him. His face lit into one of his rare smiles when Max pushed open his door and walked into the room. One hand was behind her back, and she appeared hesitant.

"Hey, you." Logan said and then paused, "I wasn't sure you'd come back after earlier."

Max smiled in relief at his change in mood. "Guess I'm a glutton for punishment. Anyway, I kind of found these, and they needed a home, so…" She pulled her hand out from behind her back to reveal a slightly bedraggled bouquet of flowers.

Logan grinned at her, "Didn't you ever hear that the guy is supposed to bring flowers to the girl?"

Max gave him a look, "Since when have we ever done anything the way we're supposed to?" she retorted sassily.

Logan laughed, "You definitely have a point." He pressed the call button and within moments an attractive, crisply dressed nurse entered the room. "Can you find something to put these in?" he asked her with a smile. Max watched as the nurse flushed slightly and smiled back eagerly at Logan. 

"I'll be right back with them, Mr. Cale." 

"No rush. He's not goin' anywhere anytime soon, and I kind of wanted some privacy to talk to him." Max said pointedly, walking over and perching on the bed next to Logan with a proprietary air. Logan smiled to himself as the nurse quickly became all business and hurried out of the room.

"Can you do that trick when they come in tomorrow morning to put me through the torture they call physical therapy here?" Logan asked her.

"What trick would that be?" Max said, her innocent tone belied by the sparkle in her eyes.

Logan laughed and on impulse he reached for her and pulled her face to his for a kiss.

Max didn't resist and he deepened it, forgetting for a few minutes where they were. He dropped his hands to her shoulders and began to pull her closer to him, but she gently pulled back and away from him.

"I don't want to get kicked out when I just got here, for endangering the welfare of a patient or something," she said ruefully.

Logan smothered his disappointment and tried to smile, "You're probably right." He reached out for her hand instead, and she allowed him to twine his fingers with hers.

"Logan," Max said growing suddenly serious. "I'm glad you're in a better mood tonight 'cause I have to tell you something."

Logan felt a shiver of foreboding, "Is this the part where you tell me that you're sorry but you've met someone else?" he teased, trying to lighten the darkness that seemed to have suddenly set in.

Max's surprise at his statement was so clear that he felt a quick surge of relief. "Are you high on some kind of meds or something?" she asked. "When would I have time to meet someone else, not to mention the inclination?"

Logan shrugged. "So what is it then?" His foreboding returned as she answered.

"I might have to go out of town for a couple of days. Family emergency you could say," Max answered vaguely. "I hate to leave you now but…"

Logan jumped to the conclusion she had hoped he would, and his brow lightened. "Max, it's okay. I know how much your siblings mean to you. If Syl or Krit needs you, who am I to keep you hanging around here?" He paused. "Are they in danger? I can't do much but I could get Sebastian to pinch hit for me if you need him to."

"No. That isn't necessary. I just need to go…visit." Max hastened to assure him. She hoped he wasn't picking up on her nervousness over this conversation. She'd lied plenty of times in her life and it had never once bothered her. But this was Logan, and she was shocked at how difficult it was to meet his eyes as she carefully danced around her real reason for leaving town.

Logan stared at her closely and she waited for him to push. But to her surprise he let it go. "Just promise me that if you need help you'll let me know. Or better yet, I'll give Sebastian a heads up and you can call him directly if you need him to do anything for you."

Max smiled in relief. "Thanks, Logan. I'll do that." 

Silence fell as the two sat looking at each other. Logan still held her hand and he dropped his gaze to their tangled fingers after a moment. He took a breath and looked back up at her, his face serious. "Max about what you said this morning, about me blaming you for my legs…"

"Yeah?"

"I just want you to know that I never blamed you for a minute for that. If it's on anyone, it's on me." He stopped and waited for her reaction, surprised at how nervous he was.

Max stared at him, surprised at his uncharacteristic openness. A slow smile crossed her face. "Wow," she said softly.

"Wow?" Logan repeated in a confused tone. 

"I can't believe we're actually talking about this. Without fighting over it. That's gotta be some kind of first for us."

They smiled at each other, and this time Max leaned in to kiss him. When she sat back up Logan reached out and gently brushed her hair back off of her face. Before they could say anymore, the door opened and the nurse returned with the flowers, now in a pretty cut glass vase.

"I found this for your flowers, Mr. Cale." She checked her watch and looked at Max.

"I'm afraid visiting hours are over." Her tone displayed none of the sweetness that was evident when she was speaking to Logan.

Max smiled sweetly at her, "I was just saying goodnight to _Logan_." She reached down and smoothed his hair, ignoring his look of amusement. "Night, _lover_," she said emphasizing the endearment. She leaned in and kissed him again, and then smoothly rose from the bed. "I'll ask OC to stop in and make sure you're okay while I'm away," she said to Logan. She walked to the nurse and took the vase of flowers from her and placed them on the small table next to Logan. "Don't you have rounds to make, bedpans to empty, that kind of thing?" she said to the nurse. 

The woman gave her a look, but turned and preceded her out the door. Max was following when she heard a low chuckle from Logan. Looking back she caught his smile.

"Have a nice trip, _lover_," he called after her. "And when you get back and I get out of here, we're gonna have a nice long discussion about that." His meaning was clear in his eyes as he let them sweep over her.

Max grinned, "You bet we are." The door closed and she was gone. Logan looked thoughtfully at the flowers, even as he tried to suppress the anxiety that was still nagging at him.

****

Max's Crib

Max finished zipping up her catsuit and checking her pockets for her usual tools. She didn't plan on doing any breaking and entering tonight, but somehow, having the familiar implements on her, made her feel better about her upcoming meeting with Lydecker. 

A thought of how Logan would react if, no when, he found out what she was doing crossed her mind, but she swiftly brushed it aside. Despite what he said about not blaming her for his paralysis, she couldn't help but blame herself. And she was going to do whatever it took to fix it for him. She'd deal with his reactions after the fact. After all making it up as she went along was one of her strengths, and somehow she'd always managed to get by. Why should this time be any different?

__

"Because you're dealing with Donald Lydecker." A small voice in her head said.

"_He's just a man. I can handle him."_ She argued back.

"You play with fire, you get burned," the voice persisted.

"I won't get burned. I **have** to do this for Logan. I owe it to him."

"Speaking of Logan, he's not going to like it when he finds out." The voice tried a new tack.

"It'll be too late for him to do anything about it by then. He might be mad at first, but he'll get over it." She reassured herself.

"If this goes sideways it's on you."

"It won't. I won't let it." Max shook her head and resolutely pushed her doubts aside. 

She began to leave the apartment but she hesitated. Turning from the door she looked around until she spotted a small pad. Taking a pencil that was laying on the counter she quickly scribbled a note to Cindy.

__

OC,

I have to try to do **something** to help Logan. Lydecker has information that I need, so I'm meeting with him tonight at the abandoned Rich Seafood warehouse down by Pier 52.

I may have to go out of town for a couple of days to get what I need from him. Don't worry and cover for me with Normal. 

Please stop by and visit Logan at Metro Med. He thinks I'm going to see Syl and Krit. I know I can count on you to have my back with him. He'll only worry if he knows.

Thanks.

Max

She read it over, nodded in satisfaction and then folded it and wrote Cindy's name on the outside. She propped it against the coffee pot, sure that Cindy would discover it there in the morning and then, after one last look around to be sure she hadn't forgotten anything, she left the apartment.

****

End of Chapter Two


	5. Chapter Three

**AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 (2003**

**Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.**

**__________________________**

**Chapter Three**

**Rich Seafood Warehouse, Pier 52**

Max parked her Ninja in an alleyway a block away from the rendezvous point set by Lydecker. Slipping through the shadows as silently as the felines she owed her physical abilities to, she reconnoitered the area. There were no vehicles to be seen, and as far as she could tell there was no surveillance in place. A niggling anxiety teased at her but she brushed it aside. 

After long minutes watching the warehouse where they were to meet, she finally used her speed to dart across the open street and flattened herself against the wall of the building next to the boarded up entrance.  Rather than trying to find a way in through the front, she slipped along the side of the building until she reached its back which bordered on the greasy looking water of the port. As she had suspected there was a wide open bay in the back of the building. Access to it was from a pier that jutted out into the water and that had long since rotted away. She glanced around and then pulled out the rope and grapple she had brought with her. With a swift motion she sent it flying onto the roof of the building. The hook caught with a faint thud and she pulled hard on it, seating it firmly. With a grim smile on her face she looped her hands in the rope and then took a running start, leaping off the edge of the asphalt into the air over the water. As she caught air she twisted, sending herself swinging in the direction of the gaping black opening in the building. Within seconds she was inside, releasing the rope as she dropped to the ground, taking the shock of the landing. 

The inside of the warehouse was dark and silent, but Max wasn't fooled. She wasn't alone.

"I'm here. Can we dispense with the games now?" she called out softly, calmly rising from the crouch she had landed in.

There was a soft snick and a lighter flame illuminated the face of Colonel Donald Lydecker. He was leaning against a support pillar regarding her calmly. "No games, Max."

There was a silence as they took each others measure. Max waited him out, wanting to keep whatever advantage she could. 

"You asked me here," the Colonel finally said. "You had a reason other than wanting to talk about old times?"

"I need something that you have." Max paused. "I'm willing to make a deal for it."

Lydecker chuckled softly. "You must be desperate indeed, Max. To offer a deal to me. What makes you think that I need anything that you have?"

"You chased after me for years. You're saying now it was just for the fun of it?" Max parried.

"Are you offering to come home to Manticore?" Lydecker raised his eyebrows. "Somehow I find that hard to believe."

"I'm offering to work for you for one mission. In return for some…technology that I know Manticore has access to."

"How do you know I can get Manticore technology for you? I became a renegade, remember?"

"And my mother is the blue fairy." Max retorted. "You and I both know you're back there."

A silence fell as the Colonel seemed to be considering Max's words. "Do I get to know what technology it is that you need so desperately?"

"Do we have a deal?" Max demanded. "My services for one mission in return for what I need."

"How do I know that what you need is something that I can afford to let you have?"

"It's personal. It's nothing that will compromise any of your lovely little science experiments. You have my word. That's the best I can give you for now."  
  


Lydecker smiled. It was the smile of the cat that has the mouse right where he wants it. Max had the feeling that he knew exactly what she wanted and why she wanted it.  "It's a deal."

Max let out the breath she hadn't known she was holding. "When and where do you want me to report?"

"That won't be necessary." 

Max felt the trap closing in around her. She cursed herself for her carelessness even as she felt the tasers hitting her from all directions at once. The last thing she heard before the convulsions induced by the tasers took over and she fell into unconsciousness, was Lydecker's voice giving instructions for securing and transporting her back to Manticore.

**Metro****Medical****Center****, Early Evening next day**

Logan put his cell phone down in frustration. He had been trying to reach Max since the morning with no success. The cell phone he had given her had satellite capabilities so there was no way she was out of reach of his calls. At least one of them should have gotten through by now.  Unless she was ignoring him, which he conceded was entirely possible. 

"Hey. I promised my boo I'd stop by and check that you weren't hittin' on the nurses while she was out of town." Original Cindy's voice broke into his abstraction.

Logan looked up and tried to smile. "Have you heard from Max today?" he asked getting right to the point.

Cindy dropped down into the chair next to his bed, looking curiously around the private room. "Not a peep. Nice digs for a hospital. Guess it pays to have the cheddar when you gotta let the men with the knives at ya."

Logan shuddered at the visions her words conjured. "Can we not talk about my medical issues? And have you heard from Max today?"

Cindy gave him a stern look. "My boo told you she was goin' out of town on family business. You doubtin' on her about that? Maybe she can't get through or maybe she's just busy with her sister girl and brother. You may be important to her, but it ain't like she can do anything for you by sittin' here holdin' your hand right now."

Logan felt sheepish at Original Cindy's words.  He sighed. "I know. It's just that I…worry about her. Since last year."

Cindy relented. She reached over and placed her hand on Logan's. "I know, boo. But you need to chill. Max'll be back in a few days and then she can come back over here and play nurse for you every night. Until then you got me though and sulkin' around ain't something Original Cindy has any patience for or will tolerate. Capite?

Logan smiled in spite of himself. "Capite."

Cindy smiled back. "So what have you got around here to pass the time? Or do we just sit and stare at the clock ticking?"

"You play poker?" Logan asked.

A wide smile crossed Original Cindy's face. "You ready to lose your shirt, white boy?"

Logan laughed and pulled a deck of cards from the drawer next to his bed, handing it to Cindy. "The deck is yours. Deal."

**End of Chapter Three…TBC…**


	6. Chapter Four

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 (2003

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

Chapter Four

Manticore

Max sat up on the narrow cot and looked around her. She was in a small examining room in the Manticore infirmary, that much she could tell. She glanced down and was relieved to see that she wasn't restrained, and that she still had on her catsuit. She swung her legs off of the cot, and rose and walked to the door. Before she could open it, the handle on it turned and it swung open to reveal a young soldier standing there.

"Colonel Lydecker is waiting to see you in his office, ma'am."

Max gave him a sharp look but then nodded, "Lead the way, Private."

They walked down dingy gray corridors that were familiar to her from her stay several months earlier, ending up outside an office with frosted glass in the top half of the door.

"I'll leave you here, ma'am," the private said. He gave her a sharp salute and then turned on his heel and left. Max watched for a moment and then shrugged. She opened the door to the office and stepped inside.

Donald Lydecker sat behind a desk, directly in front of her. He was reading a file and didn't look up as she entered and closed the door behind her. Max deliberately took a seat in one of the chairs facing his desk. She slipped a piece of bubble gum from her pocket, and began to chew it.

After a few moments, Lydecker closed the file and looked up at her. "You're going to have to remember some of that military discipline you despise if you want to do this deal, Max." He said, The mildness of his tone was belied by the sharp look in his eyes.

"_When_ we do the deal and I'm on your mission, I'll observe discipline as needed for appearances. But until then, I see no reason to stand here like one of your flunkies, waiting for you to deign to notice me." Max retorted. 

To her surprise, Lydecker chuckled. "Good to see that my predecessor didn't manage to break that spirit of yours. You're going to need it."

"What exactly am I going to need it for?" Max wanted to know.

Lydecker's tone hardened. "Enough fencing. You came to me. Before I tell you anything further, you tell me exactly what it is you want. If you aren't willing to do that, the deal's off and I'll have one of my men show you off the base."

Max sat there silently for a moment. She had been nervous that Lydecker was pulling a double cross and she wasn't going to get out of Manticore easily. Something in his words and tone, as well as the fact that she wasn't in restraints, at least eased that fear.

"I need medical technology. Specifically technology dealing with nerve and muscle repair. I know you have it from my last visit here."

"Nerve and muscle repair as they relate to spinal injuries?" Lydecker said shrewdly.

Max met his eyes and the two stared at each other for several moments. 

"Yes."

"I wondered how long it would be before you came to me. Cale's back must be deteriorating badly at this point." Lydecker observed. "Does he know you're here?"

"He doesn't." Max said flatly, not bothering to try to mislead Lydecker about her reasons for wanting the technology. He clearly knew about her relationship with Logan, and she saw no point in playing games. "He's not going to either if I have my way."

"How do you intend to explain your sudden access to technology that can allow him to walk again?" Lydecker threw out.

Max felt a sudden leap of her heart. She had known Manticore was a good way along in working with spinal injuries. Her goal had been simply to find a way to arrest Logan's physical deterioration. That they might have the ability to help him walk was more than she had dared to hope for.

"That's my problem. Not yours. _Is _it possible to for him to walk again?" Max demanded.

"There's a very good chance of it. At least according to what my doctors tell me."

"They've seen his medical records?"

Lydecker raised his eyebrows. "Know your enemy, Max. Have you forgotten everything you learned here? Information is power. I know everything there is to know about Logan Cale. More than you know, I'm sure. I know how his parents died, where he went to school, who his fourth grade teacher was, and the name of the first girl he ever kissed. His current medical condition is an open book."

Max felt a trickle of unease at Lydecker's words, but she suppressed it along with the niggling doubts she had about the wisdom of what she was doing. 

"You know what I want. What do you want from me in return?" she asked him.

"Nothing too difficult for one with your skills. I need you to head up a team for me. A small tactical team. There's an individual who's going to be coming to Seattle and we need to contain him."

Max looked at him skeptically, "Contain him? From what? And why do you need me for that? Sounds like something any one of your in house X5s could handle."

"You'll find out from what, when you need to know. As to why you. It's simple. You're the only one I have currently who's had experience with his type of bodyguards before. Not to mention the only X series who's been able to handle them and come out of it alive."

Max felt a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach. "Who exactly are his bodyguards?" She knew what Lydecker was going to answer even before he began to speak.

Lydecker's smile was grim. "He's from South Africa. They're Red series."

****

End of Chapter Four


	7. Chapter Five

**AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 (2003**

**Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.**

**_____________________________**

**Chapter Five**

**Fogle****Towers****, Three Days Later**

Bling wheeled Logan into his bedroom and helped him transfer from the chair to the bed.

"I really don't need to be lying around in bed any more, you know." Logan observed sourly. "My back feels good. No spasms for the last day."

"According to Dr. Carr you need to keep that butt of yours in this bed a good amount of time for the next week. He let you come home only on the condition that you'd follow doctor's orders. Do I need to be calling him to put your ass back in that hospital?" Bling said sternly. 

Logan stared at him stubbornly and Bling sighed. "Man, you want to be worse off than you are now? For once in your life, why don't you try doing what you should for your own good?"

"Fine. I'll stay in bed." Logan snapped. Bling started to turn away, but Logan continued, "On condition you bring me my laptop and cell phone. My body might be rotting away but my mind isn't."

Bling regarded him for a moment and then gave in. "If I get you the laptop and cell, you promise me you won't be leaving that bed except to do the necessary?"

"I promise."  Logan was clearly unhappy with Bling, but the therapist smiled to himself as he went to get the requested items for him. 

"Man, will I be glad when Max gets back. She's about the only one who can force any sense into that pig head of yours," he commented as he returned with the laptop and phone. "When is she due back anyway?"

Logan frowned. "I don't know. I haven't been able to get in touch with her since she left three days ago. It's starting to worry me."

"Max is fine. She's probably just tied up with her family. Not to mention, that she has sense enough to know that her being around right now, with all that unresolved heat sizzling between you two, is not a good thing."

"It's not like I don't have enough self control not to jump her you know." Logan retorted. "I'm not some eighteen year old kid controlled by his hormones."

Bling just gave him a look in reply.

Logan sighed, "Look, I'm good, really I am. You don't have to stick around here if you don't want to." He was already engrossed with his laptop and Bling watched him for a minute before he turned to leave.

"If you're sure, I'm gonna head out then. Got a client waiting for me. Original Cindy said she'd stop by after work to get you dinner, so you don't need to worry about getting up for that."

Logan looked up briefly, "Thanks." He paused, "Sorry I was short. It's just that being stuck in this bed and worrying about Max…"

Bling smiled, "Yeah, I know. But Max'll be back before you know it, and if you follow doc's orders in the meantime, you'll be good to go for whatever you two have planned. Beep me if you need anything."

Logan grunted in reply, and Bling left the room and let himself out of the apartment, locking the door behind him.

* * * * * * *

"Dinner has arrived." Original Cindy announced several hours later as she entered the apartment. "Logan? You around?"

She was met only by silence.  

"Logan? You sleeping?" She walked into the kitchen and set the package she was carrying on the countertop. 

"Sleeping beauty, dinner is served. And I ain't gonna wake you with a kiss to eat it. Even if I played on that team, that's reserved for my boo…" her voice trailed off as she arrived at the door to Logan's bedroom and looked inside. 

The room was empty.  The bedcovers were pushed back off of the bed, and Logan's wheelchair was missing. Several drawers in his dresser were open and there were items of clothing strewn on the floor.

Cindy walked over to the door to the bathroom. She listened for a moment and then knocked. "Logan? You in there, boy? You fall asleep in the tub? _Do not make me come in and wake you up."  She knocked again, louder this time._

There was still no answer. With a sigh Cindy pushed open the door and peered in cautiously. She pushed the door open wider. Like the bedroom the bathroom was empty. 

"Dayum." Cindy was getting alarmed. She quickly went through the rest of the apartment on the chance that Logan would be there somewhere.  The apartment was empty. There were no signs of Logan and none of a struggle. Finally she picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Bling? It's Original Cindy. Did Logan tell you he was going out somewhere?" She listened a moment. "No, he is most definitely not here. His wheelchair is gone as well…where does he keep his car keys?"

She walked to the table in the front hallway and pawed through the clutter of mail and magazines. After a moment she came up with a key ring. "His keys are still here."

She listened a moment more. "Yeah, I hear you. I'm getting out of here. Okay, I'll look for them and bring them with me. Thanks."

She hung up the phone and went back into Logan's bedroom. After a moment of searching she found his laptop and cell phone on the floor under the bed. She gathered them up and then quickly turned and left the apartment. 

**End of Chapter Five**


	8. Chapter Six

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 (2003

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

_________________

Chapter Six

Manticore, Next Day

Deck stood at the window in his office that overlooked the training grounds. He watched as a group of eight soldiers filed onto the field and stood waiting at attention. A small smile crossed his face and he walked to the door of his office and stepped into the hallway.

Within minutes he was standing outside of one of the complex's training rooms. He pushed open the door and watched for a moment as Max worked through a series of moves. When she finished the set he cleared his throat and waited for her to turn to him.

"You've gotten a bit sloppy in your moves, 452 I'd suggest you schedule some sessions with one of the training masters. Sloppiness on this mission is almost certain to be fatal," he observed, as calmly as if he was remarking on the weather.

Max glared at him. "Seeing as how I happen to be the only one who's successfully gone up against the Red series, maybe I should be giving your masters some lessons," she snapped.

"As I recall, you had the assistance of a Red implant. That won't be the case this time."

"Then what makes you think I can succeed where your others have failed?" Max retorted.

"You have an incentive that none of them had." 

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

In answer Lydecker smiled. "First, you meet your team." He left the room without waiting to see if she was following. Max glared at his back as she snatched a small hand towel from a rack and wiped the sweat that was running down her face before following him.

When they reached the door that led to the training ground, Lydecker waited for her to catch up to him. He glanced over at her and then pushed open the door to the outside. Eight X series soldiers were lined up in two rows of four, standing at attention.

"At ease." Lydecker barked and they relaxed their stances. "X5-452, this is your Tac team. You will have five days to get them into the best possible shape for the mission. That includes mental preparation to face the Red series, as well as physical conditioning. The team will be housed with you in Barracks Five and will be at your disposal 24/7. Whatever training facilities and weapons you require will be made available to you. Do you have any questions?'

"None come to mind." Max said flippantly. Lydecker glared at her and she added a belated "_Sir_," with an ironic emphasis that he noted. 

"Team, you are to proceed with normal training routine until your CO returns. 452 come with me." Lydecker turned and walked across the training ground in the direction of several clustered buildings that Max recognized as the Manticore medical complex. She followed silently.

When they reached the complex, Lydecker pushed open the entrance doorway and flashed a pass. The receptionist nodded and pressed a button that opened the double doors behind him. 

"Where are we going?" Max demanded as she followed Deck through the halls of the Manticore hospital building. They reached a pair of double doors labeled Isolation Unit and Deck placed his face in a retinal scanner. The doors opened and Max followed him through them. Lydecker walked over to an observation window and waited for Max. She let out a gasp as she realized who she was looking at in the bed beyond the window.

"What have you done to him?" Max demanded with a snarl in her voice as she stared at Logan through the isolation room window. He was unconscious, his face was almost colorless, and tubes fed into his body at numerous points. A myriad of machines softly beeped and whirred, and a white coated lab technician sat at a console in the corner, monitoring their readouts.

"I'm keeping my part of our bargain." Lydecker replied.

"I don't remember bringing him here being part of the deal. I don't like it." 

"You didn't actually think we'd allow our technology to be shared outside of Manticore did you? " Lydecker said calmly. "It's this way or no way."

Max just glared at him. "If anything happens to him, you better believe that you're going down, Deck. I'll personally make sure that you die a long and painful death."

"Those emotions of yours are going to get you killed, Max. I suggest you get them under control or you aren't going to make it through the mission alive." Deck's words hit her like icy whips reminding her of the devil's bargain she'd made with him. "Not to mention, that the welfare of your boyfriend here depends on you keeping your end of things up."

Max glared at him but refrained from commenting further. Her leashed fury was evident in her posture and her eyes, which almost scorched Deck with their intensity. 

"Don't you have a team waiting for you, soldier?" Deck snapped.

"The name is Max and don't forget it." Max turned and left. Deck remained standing outside the observation window with a thoughtful look on his face. He glanced once at Logan's unconscious body and then turned away himself, heading back to his office.

****

End of Chapter Six


	9. Chapter Seven

**AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24  **

**Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.**

_____________________

**Chapter Seven**

**Manticore****Medical****Center******

Logan was floating in a gray fog. It was warm and soft and blanketed his entire body, including his legs. That was how he knew it had to be a dream. Dreams were the only time he felt his legs since the shooting. But he was definitely feeling his legs, all the way to his toes. So it _was_ a dream. He wished it were one of the ones that included Max. But he hadn't had any of those since she had returned from Manticore.

It was boring alone in the fog and he couldn't seem to wake up, so he concentrated on trying to remember when this particular dream had begun.  He had been propped up in his bed, working on catching up on the emails that had accumulated while he was in the hospital, and he had lost all track of time since Bling had left. He figured that somewhere in there he had drowsed off, because the next thing he remembered was the sound of his door opening.****

"You sure you don't want me to show you where the master bedroom is?" Logan recognized the voice as that of Oscar, one of the building's doormen.

"That won't be necessary. We've had a few emergency calls in this building before. If you could just stay at the elevator and make sure it remains on this floor, that would be a big help. We don't know what kind of shape Mr. Cale is in, and we may need to get him out of here in a hurry," said a second voice that Logan didn't recognize at all.

"Good thing Mr. Cale put in that emergency alert system. Him living here alone and being crippled and all." Oscar said cheerfully. Logan frowned. Emergency alert system? What in hell was Oscar talking about? He heard footsteps approaching his room and moved by a sudden impulse, he closed his laptop and shoved it under his bed.

Two men dressed as Emergency Medics appeared in the doorway of his room, pushing a stretcher in front of them.

"I think you have the wrong apartment." Logan said to them calmly.

"Logan Cale?"

"It's him," said the second one, not bothering to acknowledge Logan. He pulled a hypodermic needle from a medical bag that was open on the stretcher and advanced on Logan.

"I don't know who in hell you are or what you want but…" Logan's sentence was cut off as the first medic seized his arm in an iron grip. It was the kind of grip that Logan recognized all too well from experiencing it from Max on occasion. His mouth dropped open and he managed to say, "You're X5…" before a hand clamped over his mouth silencing him, and the second medic plunged the needle into his bicep.

The dream was vague after that. Whatever was in the shot had acted quickly and he remembered being moved to the stretcher, and then being wheeled out through his apartment and into the elevator.  The medics had said something about a fall to Oscar who had nodded seriously, and then he was placed in an ambulance. Next thing he knew was the present fog. He wondered what had set off a dream of being taken by Manticore. He hadn't had them on his mind much lately, not since he had stopped his hacks into their system for a while at Max's insistence.  Maybe it was his frustration at the impasse in their relationship brought on by his physical condition, he reasoned. He had pretty much resolved that he had to let Max go for her own good, rather than saddle her with a helpless cripple. The prospect was bringing back some of the depression he had experienced when he had lost her to Manticore the last time. That must have triggered this particular dream. But the dream wasn't ending, he wasn't waking up, and he was really bored. Giving in to his boredom he let himself drift back into the fog.

******

Max stood staring through the Isolation Unit window at Logan. "Why isn't he waking up?" she demanded of Donald Lydecker. "You've had him here for three days."

"We aren't allowing him to." The Colonel answered calmly. "It's better if he's unaware of the procedures. Less painful for him."

"I suppose I should be grateful that you aren't giving him the same TLC you used to show us as kids." Max said acidly. 

Lydecker let that go unanswered. "Is your team ready?" He asked abruptly.

"As ready as they're going to be." Max answered. "When's D-Day?"

"When I tell you it is."

Max shrugged and turned to stare at Logan again. "I want to go in"

"I'd advise against it. There's a risk of infection."

Max laughed. "I'll scrub. And you know as well as I do, that my immune system kills any malignant microorganisms almost as fast as they arrive, so there's no chance of my carrying anything contagious."

Lydecker looked at her for a few moments and seemed to come to some decision. He reached over and pressed a button below the window. "Send a tech to take X5-452 through disinfection. Stat."

Max met his eyes and at his nod, she turned to the door that had slid open on the sidewall of the room they were in. "Thanks," she said briefly as she turned and followed the medical technician who waited for her. 

Deck nodded in acknowledgement. He watched as she exited the room and the door slid closed behind her. 

******

Logan roused from his fog at the sensation of a soft touch. It felt like a hand was brushing his hair gently back from his face. He struggled to open his eyes but all he could see was the fog.

"Logan."  

That sounded like Max's voice and he tried harder, still with no success. He did smile to himself at the thought that at least he was hearing her in this dream. 

"Logan, it's gonna be okay. I promise. Trust me." He wondered what Max was talking about. "Logan, listen to me. It's important." She paused. He felt soft lips touch his briefly and then she whispered, "I love you. It's always only been you. Never forget that, no matter what."

He struggled mightily and managed to pry an eye open. Max's face floated above him, blurred and out of focus. She seemed to be smiling sadly at him. His eyes closed again and he felt another butterfly touch before the fog reclaimed him.

******

Max straightened up. Logan had opened his eyes for the merest fraction of a second when she had kissed him, but she had no way of knowing if he had really been conscious of her or her words. She gently brushed his hair back again and then turned and looked up to where she knew Deck still stood watching,

"Bring it on, Lydecker. It's time to get this bitch over with," she said, knowing he could hear every word. Then she turned on her heels and left the room, leaving the tech standing there, watching her in bemusement.

**End of Chapter Seven**


	10. Chapter Eight

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 2003

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

_________________

Chapter Eight 

Barracks Five

Max looked around at her team as they relaxed in the barracks after their latest training session. There were five males and three females, six of them X6 series and two X5S.

When she had "visited" here last she had learned about the X5S series. After the escape of 2009 the remaining X5s had been subjected to intensive psychological and drug treatments. The result being X5S, short for X5 Simplified. The X5S's were identical to the original X5 series in terms of physical characteristics such as speed and strength. But they were not good at independent thought. They took orders well, but none of them were useful as CO's. The X6's had been redesigned so that they could act as leaders if needed, but they still had limited independence built in to them.

Max frowned as she noticed that one of the X6s was missing. Her second in command, a young brunette, designation X6-387, nickname Trina. That was another change made after the escape. X series were assigned not only a number but also a nickname to be used off duty. It was an attempt to circumvent the bonding that naming themselves in secret had created among the escapees. Manticore kept control of the naming, thus taking away any illicit thrills or comradeship that might go along with it. 

"Dun, where's Trina?" Max asked one of the male X6's.

"She got called in to HQ right after you left. She should be back any minute. Ma'am." Dun replied promptly.

"Tell her I want to see her the minute she's back." Max snapped out. "I'll be in my room." She headed into the small private room she rated as CO, thinking hard about Trina's absence. She didn't quite trust the X6. Something about her made her uneasy. 

When she reached her room she dropped onto the narrow cot that was one of the two pieces of furniture in it, and let her mind wander. She was having second thoughts about the wisdom of involving Lydecker in Logan's medical problems but she recognized that it was too late to pull back. "If you hurt him you're going down, Deck. If it's the last thing I do," she muttered to herself. 

A knock on her door startled her from her abstraction and she sat up on the bed. "Come in."

The door opened and Trina stood there at attention. "Ma'am. You wanted to see me?"

"What did HQ want?" Max demanded.

Trina held out a manila envelope. "They gave me this to deliver to you, Ma'am."

Max snatched the envelope from her hand and ripped open the seal. She pulled out the sheet of paper inside and perused it rapidly. When she finished she looked up at Trina. "Advise the team to prepare to move out. We leave for the mission at 1900 hours. Full urban gear. Make sure that Griffin brings plenty of flash bangs as well as plastique. That will be all."

Trina saluted again and turned on her heel smartly, closing the door behind her as she left Max alone. Max just sat there, staring out of the window at the parade grounds. She wondered if any of them were going to make it through the mission alive. 

****

British Embassy, Seattle

Several hours later Max and her team were deployed on the rooftop of the building adjoining the British Embassy. The neighborhood below them was dark. 

"Control advises that the sensors on the roof, and in the stairwells leading down from it, have been disabled." Mara, the communications tech said quietly. 

Max glanced at her team as they stood there in silent readiness. She nodded. "From this point all verbal communication ceases. Hand signals only," she ordered. Her team acknowledged the order with nods. Satisfied Max signaled for them to begin their assault. 

According to the orders she had received, the South African Ambassador who was supposedly here on a trade visit, was in actuality a member of their armed forces. He was a commander of Red Series soldiers. They had managed to capture an X6 female outside of Seattle and were preparing to return with her to South Africa, where they would use her in their continuing research program. Max shuddered to herself as she remembered how they had once tried to snatch her. She mused to herself that she almost might have signed on for this mission for its own merits if Lydecker had approached her about it before she went to him.

A touch on her arm brought her back to the present, and she looked up to see Trina waiting next to her. She signaled that the team was in place on the Embassy's roof. Max nodded grimly and walked to the edge of the roof. A wire had been strung across between the buildings, its black color making it invisible in the night. She signaled for Trina to precede her and then Max stepped onto the wire. She walked across it with ease, displaying a grace and balance that a professional tightrope walker would have envied. 

The team was already deployed on the rooftop when Max stepped down from the wire. 

She nodded at them and then gave the order to proceed into the building and take up their predetermined positions. Within seconds the rooftop was empty as the team slipped through the roof access and made their way to their assignments. 

"Griffin, are you in position?" Max whispered into her throat mike as she paused outside of the door that led from the stairwell to the third floor. Intelligence told them that the X6 was being held in a room there. 

"Affirmative. Charges are set to go off at a touch of the detonator. They'll take out all power to the building," came the answer in her ear.

"Get back up to three and join the team." Max replied. 

She checked to see that the rest of the team was deployed at all entrances to the third floor and waited for Griffin to get into position. He reported back to her in less than five minutes. Max looked at Trina. "It's show time."

Trina nodded and began to speak soft orders into her mike, directing the team into action. At the same time Max pressed the detonator switch on her belt. 

Within seconds there was a muffled explosion and the lights in the building flickered and went out. At the same time the Tac team began their sweep of the third floor rooms, looking for the prisoner they were there to free.

Max stood in the center of the hallway frowning. Something didn't feel right to her. Suddenly she spun and looked at the main stairway. There was the sound of footsteps pounding up it, seemingly undeterred by the darkness. As she watched, several husky soldiers came into view. They wore infrared goggles and carried automatic weapons.

But more ominously they each also carried a taser. She could tell by the way they carried themselves that they were Red series. At the same time Trina said in her ear. "Ma'am the rooms are all empty. No sign of a prisoner here."

"It's a trap!" Max shouted. "Fall back to the roof."

"The roof access is blocked!" someone shouted. 

Max was racing down the hallway. "Come to me." 

She threw open the doorway to a stairwell but instead of trying to head up she looked down. "We go down." So far the Reds hadn't fired a shot, but the Xs could hear them drawing closer. 

"There's a panic room on the second floor. Off the Ambassador's bedroom. Get to it." Max directed her team. Trina took the lead and Dun brought up the rear. As the Reds came into sight he began to bring up his weapon.

"It won't do any good." Max shouted. "Use a flash bang instead. Blind them. It buys us time."

She looked away as he nodded and tossed an explosive in the direction of the Reds. There was a blinding flash behind them and the sound of footsteps stopped temporarily as the Xs flew down the stairwell. 

Within moments they were all accounted for in the panic room. Max did a quick head count and ordered Trina and Dun to close the room up. Then she looked around. The nine of them were trapped inside a steel shell that was approximately 10 feet by eighteen feet. There was a bank of TV monitors on the wall, all dark with the lack of power. 

"There has to be a generator in here. Find it and power up and get in contact with HQ." Max ordered. We're safe here for now but there's a way in here and those guys will be using it soon. I counted fifteen Red series. We can't match them physically so HQ's gonna have to come up with something." She thought for a moment. "Put in your nose filters. I wouldn't be surprised if they pump something in here to put us out. This was a trap to catch themselves some X5s and we walked right into it."

"Ma'am what do we do when they do break in?" asked one of the X5s.

Max gave him a hard look. "We kick their asses and buy time until HQ gets us out of here."

The X5 nodded and Max waited impatiently for the comm link to be set up. As they worked they became aware of sounds outside the room. 

"They're setting charges." Dun said. 

"What I expected." Max replied. "Get ready for when they blow the wall out."

"Ma'am I have Colonel Lydecker on the comm."

Max took the comm set the tech was holding out to her. "It's a goddamn trap." She snarled into it. "There are a minimum of fifteen Red Series out there waiting to grab all of us. We can't match them physically or for firepower. I hope you have a contingency set up. And I hope you plan on finding out who the traitor is in Manticore who set up this party."

"How much time do you estimate you have?" Lydecker asked calmly.

"Fifteen maybe twenty minutes tops." Max responded. "We're in the panic room and the walls are solid, but they'll blow through them by then."

"We're working on it." Lydecker's comm cut out.

"HQ is working on getting us out of here. Until they do, prepare to go down fighting." Max ordered her team. "Unless you want an all expense paid vacation in South Africa where you'll get to be the guest of the Red Army's medical and scientific corps."

****

End of Chapter Eight


	11. Chapter Nine

****

AS 2.07: Devil's Waltz by Star24 2003

Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters are copyright 2000-2002 Twentieth Century Fox Studios and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original fiction is copyright 2003 Star24.

___________________

Chapter Nine

Manticore Medical Center

Logan had another dream visitor, but this time it was an unwelcome one. The soft yet chilling voice urging his attention, was that of Donald Lydecker.

"Cale. I know you can hear me. Max is in trouble. She's trapped with a Tac Team and a squad of Red Series is closing in on them. We can't get to them with any reinforcements. I know you helped her with the Red Series last year. I need your help now."

"Didn't help Max with the Red's last year." Logan muttered. "She did it herself…she had a Red implant…almost killed her…" Logan couldn't concentrate. He was drifting off again.

"That's what I need to know. Why didn't it kill her? What did you do to it? I know you were there." Lydecker's voice was insistent. "Cale, Max could die if you don't tell me something I can use to help her."

"Blew it out. With cardio paddles. Short circuited the damn thing." Logan roused himself enough to say.

"We can't do that. Damn it." Lydecker muttered to himself.

Logan chuckled. "Don't need to. Had no time to do anything else last time. Inelegant solution. Easier one available."

"What are you talking about?" Lydecker's voice demanded.

"A Pulse." Logan said.

"It's no use, he's too out of it to make any sense, sir," another voice said.

"No, wait." Lydecker's voice said. "What do you mean by a pulse?"

"A mini-pulse. An EMP in the area of the implant would have killed it as well. Didn't have the equipment. Used the paddles instead. Brute force instead of finesse…" Logan was drifting again. This time Lydecker let him go. The fog reclaimed him.

Manticore Weapons Lab

The weapons tech stood listening intently to Donald Lydecker as he explained what he wanted. "Can you do it?" he asked when he finished.

The tech looked offended. "Any High School kid with a rudimentary knowledge of physics could do it sir. Given the time and equipment."

"I need it done within fifteen minutes at this address." Lydecker indicated the British Embassy on the plasma display in front of them. The tech studied it. 

"Do you have any Tac teams in the area?" he asked. "With full weaponry?"

"There's a backup here." Lydecker pointed to the map. 

"I need to talk to their demo guy. And they need to get within a block of the target."

  
Lydecker nodded to his assistant. "Get him set up on comm. I'll advise the team leader to get into position." He looked at the tech. "You now have ten minutes to do this. I don't look kindly on failures." With those chilling words he left the room.

Panic Room

The soft sounds that indicated the Reds were placing the explosives had slowed down. Max looked grimly at Griffin and Trina. "It's getting quiet."

"They should be almost set. I estimate they'll blow the wall in three to five minutes." Griffin confirmed.

"Get everyone to the far corner – move this furniture to create a shield against debris." The Xs were already in action before she finished speaking. Max joined her team, crouched behind the makeshift shelter they had created, hitting her comm set as she did.

"Lydecker? We're down to the wire here. What's happening??"

Her headset crackled with his voice. "We've got a solution. It should be a go within the next five minutes." 

"It better be because…" Max's words were interrupted by the dull crump of explosives going off, followed by a shower of debris as the panic room wall blew in. "They're in. What've you got for us?" she demanded even as she prepared for the Red assault.

The Reds followed hard on the debris and she found herself caught up in a fight for her life. The other Xs were similarly occupied. The fight would have been over in seconds but Max realized that they had an unforeseen advantage. The Reds wanted to capture not kill, them, while they had no such restraints.

Max quickly signaled her realization to her SIC who passed it on. "Avoid the Tasers." Max shouted. "Aim for their heads. You've got to shoot to kill."

The room was a mass of smoke and dust as the two groups battled fiercely. Max found herself facing a hulking Red soldier who easily outweighed her by at least one hundred pounds. He aimed his Taser at her but she had already leapt into the air and somersaulted over his head. She landed behind him and threw herself onto his back, tightening her hands around his neck. Despite his strength he died as quickly as any normal human when she twisted sharply and listened to the snap of it breaking. The Red dropped to the ground and Max turned, only to see two Reds more bearing down on her. Several of the Xs were writhing on the floor where the Red Tasers had sent them, and it wasn't looking good. 

"Deck we're out of time!" Max said into her comm. The two soldiers began to bring up the tasers. Suddenly they seemed to shudder and they stopped their motion. Max looked around and saw all of the Red series similarly frozen. One by one they dropped to the floor where they lay convulsing. 

"What just happened?" she asked.

"Are they down?" Lydecker asked in her ear.

Max checked the room. "Every one of them is on the floor in convulsions."

Lydecker chuckled in satisfaction. "They just got hit with a Pulse. It fried the microchips in their implants."

"How come we can still talk then? Why wasn't the comm gear fried as well?"

"Manticore gear is EMP hardened and shielded. It would take more than the minimal pulse we created to knock it out. We're lucky that the Reds never thought to shield the implants. Maybe because they never experienced a Pulse firsthand." 

Max's team were picking themselves up and gathering their equipment. "I guess we can get out of here then."

"No, you have one more thing to do. I want Murdoch, the Red team leader. Trina knows his location. Bring him in." Lydecker said. 

"Fine. Be ready for pickup in five." Max snapped. She instructed her team to move to the pre–arranged rendezvous point, and then nodded to Trina to come with her. 

Max followed the X6 down the main stairs. More Red series lay there twitching, and they stepped over them. When they reached the first floor they entered an office. A gray haired man in his fifties stood behind a desk.

"Let's go." Max said to him.

"I don't think so." Trina said. Max turned and looked at her. The X6 had a gun out pointing at her. "You're going to be taking a little trip to South Africa. One X5 is better than none."

"You're the traitor." Max said flatly. "What for? Money?"

Trina laughed, "You of all people should know the answer to that. Freedom."

Murdoch spoke for the first time, "I think not. The deal was your freedom in exchange for a few X series. Male and female. Not just one. You're both going to be coming along with us." He had a gun out, pointed directly at the two of them.

Trina growled in rage and sprung at Murdoch. There was the sound of a shot and her body seemed to hang in the air for a moment before falling with a thud onto the desk. Blood began to spread from under her making a thick pool on the polished desktop.

Max whirled back to Murdoch, only to find herself in his gun sight. "The rest of my forces will be here any minute now. We aren't going anywhere," she said calmly. She held Trina's gun loosely at her side. The X6 had shoved it into her hand before she leapt at Murdoch.

There was the sound of voices in the hallway and Murdoch frowned. "In that case you're going the way of your friend. If I have to go, I'm taking both of you bitches with me." His fingers tightened on the trigger of the gun he held pointed at Max. 

There was another gunshot. The man dropped to the floor. Max looked down in horror at the smoking gun in her hand. 

"Nice work 452. I knew training would tell when it came down to it." Donald Lydecker stood in the doorway of the room, regarding her almost proudly. "The mission was always to terminate Murdoch. He wasn't going to stop until he got his hands on Manticore technology. With him gone, it will take the South Africans several years to regroup."

"You set me up. You knew I'd never agree to an assassination." 

Lydecker shrugged. "I didn't plan on you specifically killing him That was Trina's assignment. But you did what you had to do. What you were made to do. Blood will out, Max. You're a soldier, no matter how hard you try to deny it."  
  
Max growled and with a feral look on her face, she sprung at Lydecker. "You god damned bastard…" That was the last she knew, as she was hit by tasers from all sides and she fell into a heap at the Colonel's feet. 

****

End of Chapter Nine


	12. Epilogue

****

Disclaimer: _Dark Angel and its characters are property of Twentieth Century Fox and James Cameron and Charles Eglee. This original story is property and ©2003 Star24._

****

Epilogue

A room somewhere 

Logan was dreaming again, but this time he didn't want the dream to end. He was lying in a darkened room on a large soft bed and Max was lying curled up next to him. She was dressed in a pair of camouflage pants and a grey T-shirt, and he briefly wondered why. 

She shivered and let out a soft cry, "No. Don't…" The rest of what she said was unintelligible.

"Max?" he asked, his concern for her evident in his voice. He reached out a hand to stroke her hair. The sensation felt so real that he paused momentarily. He moved his legs experimentally and they responded easily. So he was clearly still dreaming.

Her eyes opened and she reached out and grasped at him desperately. "Logan…" Her mouth was on his and her hands were everywhere at once, pulling and ripping at his clothing and at her own. 

"Max, it's okay…calm down…." Her mouth stopped his words, and then he was drowning in the taste of her as she kissed him. Her tongue was in his mouth and he gasped at the sensation of her body pressed up against his. Somehow their clothes were gone, and they were lying on the bed in a tangle of limbs. He couldn't tell where he ended and she began. Logan felt himself falling. He tried to resist, but Max wouldn't let him. He gave up the fight and let himself go. He lost himself in Max as they came together, and then, still together, went up in flames…

Later he roused from a deep sleep. He looked down at Max who was lying sprawled across his chest. She lifted her head to look at him.

"Want to tell me what that was all about before?" he asked. "Not that I have any complaints." He stroked her back idly, enjoying the feel of her sleek skin with its underlying muscles. "It's just that it's not exactly how I imagined our first time together would be." 

She flushed slightly. "I'm sorry. Sometimes the adrenaline takes you like that…after…" She stopped.

"After what?" Logan wanted to know.

"An intense experience." Max finally answered.

"Is everything okay with your family? No trouble?" Logan looked at her sharply.

Max laughed nervously. "No, it's fine. They're fine. I'm good."

Before he could push it any further she leaned up and kissed him. "Now that we're finally here…can we forget all that…" Her hands were busy, and Logan forgot what he had been going to ask her as the realization that they were indeed there washed over him. He briefly wondered again at the clarity of this dream compared to his earlier ones, but all rational thought fled as Max began to move her body sensuously against his. Without any further urging, he gave his entire attention to making slow, sweet love to her.

  
Next Morning

Max roused from a deep sleep and lay there for a moment assessing her situation. The last thing she remembered clearly was being hit by the tasers as she started to attack Lydecker. After that there had been darkness, followed by dreams.

She slowly became aware that she was lying on a soft surface, her clothing was missing, and there was another person breathing softly behind her. In a panic she rolled over and saw Logan. The sheets had slipped down and were draped over his waist leaving his torso bare. She reached over to touch him tentatively, and her hand met warm, solid, real flesh. Memories of their activities the preceding night rushed over her as she watched him, and she realized that she hadn't been dreaming. It had really happened.

She thought of how it had felt to have his strong body pressed against hers, and flushed slightly as she remembered Original Cindy's comments about what Logan wanted to do to and with her. "If she only knew…" Max thought to herself as she stretched and smiled. She noticed a slight soreness in her muscles, probably from the combination of the fight with the Reds and her previous night's activities with Logan.

Logan was fast asleep, lying on his back, softly snoring. She looked around and recognized the room. Unless she was mistaken, they were in the Steinlitz Hotel. She frowned briefly as she saw that the security bolt on the door was thrown from the inside. Concentrating her senses, she determined that despite that, they were alone in the room. Of course it was possible that Logan had thrown the bolt the night previously, but somehow she doubted that was the case. The situation reeked of Lydecker.

She quietly climbed from the bed and pulled the soft sheet up over Logan's sleeping form. She decided that she needed to clear her head, and thought that maybe a shower would help. In moments she was safely locked in the bathroom, and steaming hot water was running over her as she allowed the memories of the night before, and what had happened in the room and bed outside of the bathroom door, to rush through her mind.

* * * * * *

When Max emerged from her shower she realized that she had neglected to bring any clothing into the bathroom. Luckily, there were two thick fluffy white robes hanging on hooks on the back of the door. She wrapped one around her and cinched the belt around her waist. She grabbed a thick towel and quickly dried her hair and combed out the worst of the snarls. Deciding that that was the best she was going to do with what was available to her, she took a breath and opened the door leading to the room.

Logan was awake. He was standing next to the desk with a sheet knotted around his waist, looking down at something. The television droned softly in the background. He looked in her direction when she opened the door from the bathroom. Their eyes locked and she smiled at him shyly.

Logan looked her over. He made no move toward her. His face was impassive as he said. "Last night wasn't a dream."

"No." Max answered simply. Her smile faded and a trickle of anxiety ran down her spine. She stood and waited silently for him to continue. 

Logan looked from her, down to his legs, which were outlined by the sheet that covered him from his waist down. "This isn't a dream. Lydecker wasn't a dream. I really can walk again." He paused. "Somehow, I feel safe in assuming that it's courtesy of Manticore."

"Yes." Max confirmed. Her stomach was in knots as Logan nodded grimly at her answer. "Logan…I…"

"That means that this isn't a dream either." He ignored her words and reached down to the desktop and picked up a single folded sheet of paper. Wordlessly he held it out to Max. 

She advanced slowly, and took it from his outstretched hand. For a moment she stood there holding it, making no move to read it. This close, Logan's scent was almost overwhelming. She wished she could just take him back to the bed that stood behind her and continue where they had left off the night before. She cursed herself for her carelessness in not checking out the room before she went to shower.  
  
Logan's voice was harsh as he said to her abruptly, "Read it."

Max slowly unfolded the sheet and looked down at the paper. She felt sick to her stomach as she read what it said, and realized that Logan had read it as well.

Max;

The room is yours through tomorrow. Consider it a performance bonus over and above our quid pro quo.

Lydecker 

When she finally looked up from reading the note, Logan held up her grimy clothing. She grimaced as she saw the unmistakable blood stains on the shirt and smelled the scent of gunpowder and explosives.  
  
"Logan, I can explain…" she tried, looking up at him with panic in her eyes.

"I'm listening," he said. His voice was soft, but Max would have preferred outright anger to the calm coldness he was displaying.

She searched his eyes and face, desperately trying to read his thoughts and emotions. "When Sam told me about your prognosis, I had to do something to get you help. From my stay there, I knew that Manticore had capabilities for the repair of injuries that aren't matched anywhere in the world…"

At that moment, the chiming sound of a breaking news bulletin cut into her words. At first she and Logan ignored it, but as the announcer began to speak, both turned their attention to the television.

****

"…KPMC News Exclusive, Carolyn Chan at the British Embassy. Authorities have finally released information on the explosions reported several nights ago at the Embassy building. We have learned that the explosions occurred when a band of mercenaries breached the top level security here. Despite the valiant efforts of in-house security forces, the Ambassador from South Africa, who was here on a trade mission, was killed, along with at least five members of his security force. It is believed to be a deliberate assassination. The attackers were commanded by a woman in her early twenties, and were equipped with state of the art military equipment. We are being allowed inside of the embassy to bring you pictures of the damage from the attack. Authorities advise that a Terrorism Alert remains in force at this time…" 

The camera panned from the reporter to a shot of the interior of the embassy. It looked like a bomb had gone off. Max snatched up the remote and turned off the television. She slowly turned to look up at Logan. 

He was staring down at her with a look of horror on his face. "What have you done?" he whispered, the words echoing mockingly around the two of them. 

End of Devil's Waltz

__

AN: While I thought the S2 virus was a completely ridiculous plot device, I have always agreed that Max and Logan would never have an easy time getting together. The nature of their lives and who they are, always made it clear to me at least, that these were two people who weren't going to end up with the white picket fence and 2 kids and a dog. Their very natures wouldn't allow for it. At least not for many years to come, if ever. 

But at the same time, it was clear they loved each other and were going to find a way to consummate that love. There was always an inevitability to them coming together, just as it is inevitable that they will be torn apart by the forces surrounding them. Since I love S1 and consider Lydecker the consummate villain, I chose to use him as the deus ex machina in their downfall. So now the shoe has dropped, leaving each one to figure out just how much they want to be together, and if the price is one they are willing and able to pay.

Star


End file.
